November 2020 Cultural Work Roundup

Through working towards long-term change and transformation we must take the time to take care of ourselves and the people and communities we love. What are we each doing every day that brings us joy? How do we each reflect on our journey in order to prevent burnout? Below is a list of BIPOC makers, radical thinkers, and doers who can guide and ground us, featuring recommendations by Cultural Work Volunteer Alisa Chen and APANO's Arts & Media Project (AMP) members.

Watch

Minari Trailer – Directed by Lee Isaac Chung, Minari follows the journey of a family from Korea searching for a better life in America, where they move to a tiny farm in Arkansas. In pursuit of the American Dream, the film asks: what roots us? And what does it take to make a home?



I am Here – a short film from REI about Yesenia Castro as she climbs Mount Saint Helens. Yesenia writes that “I was also excited to bring diversity and a new face to the mountain, and I wondered if my two brothers and I would be the only Mexicanos out there. My parents came to mind; if they crossed mountains, with limited supplies of water and basically no food, I had no excuse.”



Colour the Trails – as part of the Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival (VIMFF), there will be 5 short films shown that showcase diversity in the outdoors. The film festival will run from November 20th to the 29th, and there will be a live panel discussion on November 25th at 6pm PDT.

Practice

Dismantle Change Build Center – From Critical Resistance, this new space is a “home base for community organizing.” Every Tuesday night the DCBC hosts a Volunteer Night and Book Sale to raise funds for postage.



Indigenous Marketplace – the Portland Indigenous Marketplace aims to support indigenous artists and entrepreneurs by creating accessible and respectful spaces for artists to share their work and promote education through cultural arts. The next market will be on Friday, November 27th and will be entirely virtual! More details will be released soon.



Come Thru BIPOC Market – Managed by Raceme Farm Collective and supported Black Food Sovereignty NW. The market will be held every other Monday, from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM, starting June 29th at The Redd on Salmon, 831 SE Salmon St, Portland. The last market of the year will be on November 9th. “Types of products include produce, teas, herbal medicines, prepared food (to go only) and more! Masks are required. We’ll provide disposable masks and some vendors will likely be selling masks.” Interested in joining as a BIPOC vendor? Visit their website to fill out the vendor application for free.



East Portland Arts & Literary Festival (EPALF) 2020: Resilience, Care, and Transformation – This year, the festival will be held entirely online and seeks “to offer what we can: to listen, learn, build, transform, create space, and heal.” EPALF will take place from November 11th-20th!

Listen

The Kashmir Podcast – a bi-weekly podcast working to share information about the deep-rooted inequities and injustices happening in Kashmir. “The Kashmir Podcast will delve into the everyday lives of Kashmiris, bringing you first-hand perspectives on their daily struggles & battles for justice, and stories of resistance and resilience in a fight against occupation and colonization. “



Self Evident: Asian America’s Stories – “A new podcast where we challenge the narratives about where we’re from, where we belong, and where we’re going — by telling Asian America’s stories.” Hosted by Cathy Erway, this podcast aims to reflect the multiethnic communities that the term “Asian Americans” encompasses, while asking questions like: what stories are being told and why? And who is the American Dream for?



Is It Time to Say R.I.P to ‘POC’? – From the podcast Code Switch comes this new episode about the differences between “BIPOC” and “POC.” Inspired by the Black Lives Matter protests that have reignited the discussion surrounding how our language can be inclusive or othering, this episode asks “What do we mean when we say "people of color"? Why do some of us identify with that term? Why does it annoy so many other people? Is it time to say R.I.P. to POC? And, if so, is BIPOC the new kid on the block?”

Read

The Four Bodies: A Wholistic Toolkit for Coping with Racial Trauma – This article discusses how we hold and can heal from racial trauma. Jacquelyn Ogorchukwu writes that “While the only way for us to truly heal from racial trauma is for racism to be dismantled, my hope is that this toolkit can offer some guidance on how we can cope as we work towards this mission. We are so often expected to take on the role of dismantling racism that we forget that the main job of a survivor of abuse is to heal. Centering healing in our narrative is a radical act because it reminds us that we are human — something that society has tried to make us forget. Now is the time to lean into practices that our ancestors set aside for us.”



We Insist by NPR – a timeline that outlines a series of short readings and songs that attempt to document the songs and videos that help define this past summer through documenting the waves of protests across the nation and globe to demonstrate for Black lives and against police brutality. The series is titled “We Insist” as a nod to Max Roach’s protest album from the ‘60s of the same name. The timeline is a work in progress that will be updated with more stories “about noteworthy songs that confront white supremacy and the state’s historical mistreatment of Black citizens.”



If you have BIPOC art and culture to add to this list or additional resources, please contact Cultural Work Coordinator Roshani Thakore or Cultural Work Volunteer Alisa Chen.